PVCNC 16

Chapter – 16

“So there is no problem.”

No, there are problems. A lot of them!

“S-Such a thing….”

“Then… it isn’t anyone’s fault.”

There are even more because of you.

You damn bastard!

• RopanAssociationPresident (romxxx): LOLLLLLLLLL
• BreadEater (mukxxx): Xenon… you just murdered Wendy’s social life….
• SomSom (sorxxx): Is this the place where you grow through getting beaten?

ㄴ KimHaetsal (yesxxx): Yes. The male lead personally helps with that.

• PositiveLife (posxxx): Now she’ll confidently ask to be hit. I like it.

ㄴ Holala (holxxx): You become stronger in exchange for your humanity.

[You have gained favor from 7 observers.]
[Total Favor: 51]

As if to mock me, the status window spread out before my eyes.

Forget favor—I just wanted to grab my head and collapse.

* * *

Some time later—

“Everyone must be shocked, but please listen to me for just a moment. Just a moment.”

In the end, I had to gather my companions—who were drowning in shock and confusion—and explain everything for a whole hour.

“First of all, this entire situation is a misunderstanding from beginning to end.”

I started with an explanation about the skill Big Data I obtained.

Then how I asked Xenon for help when he woke up because I was unsure what to do.

And even the fact that what Eden saw was also a misunderstanding.

After explaining everything, the piled-up misunderstandings finally began to clear.

“Ahaha… I see. I’m really sorry for jumping to conclusions.”

Yeriell laughed awkwardly and apologized after hearing my explanation. Seeing that made me feel relieved.

At least we got past the biggest hurdle.

After taking a deep breath, I finally felt more at ease.

“Then do you have to keep training like that? No! It’s dangerous!”

Lilia’s worried voice warmed my exhausted body and mind.

“If that was the case, you could have just woken me up. I’m also pretty—”

Eden, who had been depressed after getting flicked on the forehead, said something suspicious, making me tilt my head slightly.

But still, it was fortunate this whole incident was over.

“Why would you say something so strange?”

Because of this socially clueless idiot, what unnecessary suffering this became.

I glared at Xenon, who had created a snowball of misunderstanding by skipping way too many explanations.

“Did I say something wrong?”

Of course not.

Xenon always only said correct things.

But that didn’t change the fact he had completely flipped my situation upside down.

“Anyway, everyone suffered because of me this early in the morning.”

They should have been sleeping and recovering their stamina…

Instead they ran around because of me.

I felt bad, so I thought I should do something for them.

And I had accumulated quite a bit of favor.

[Total Favor: 51]

Maybe I should open a little gift bundle?

“Let’s see….”

With my arms crossed, I looked at the square window floating at eye level.

Magic Cart

~Express delivery service for items from this world~

[Total Favor: 51]
[Available items: 33]

• Low-grade Random Box (Favor: 10)
  └ A random box with unknown contents. Curious? Just open it!
• Low-grade First Aid Kit (Favor: 20)
  └ Includes multipurpose ointment X-cidin and Made-X-sol. Red medicine and gauze included as a bonus.
• Extremely Pathetic Dagger (Favor: 5)
  └ Very pathetic. Is the performance pathetic too?

.

.

.

There were quite a few items I had seen before.

But maybe because I had enough favor now, the purchasable list had expanded significantly.

As I carefully scanned the list, my gaze stopped at a certain point.

Necklace of Memories

A cute pink rose gemstone. Looking at it brings back childhood memories.

Worn Leather Guard

A glove faded after long use. Torn and scarred, but even pain cannot defeat time.

Oh ho.

A Necklace of Memories and a Worn Leather Guard.

The necklace would be a good gift for Lilia.

Because the pink gemstone looked just like her hair color.

The leather guard would also be useful for Eden, who mainly used a bow.

Since I didn’t find anything suitable for Yeriell, I planned to give her a random box.

I wanted to buy something better, but financially I couldn’t afford it.

As for Xenon, I can just buy him anything.

He wasn’t the type to care about gifts anyway.

After a short consideration, I immediately made the purchases.

Ding!

[All items have been purchased!]
[Total Favor: 20]

My precious favor drained away like an outgoing tide.

I’d be lying if I said it didn’t hurt, but this was an investment for the future.

I had to build goodwill in advance so I wouldn’t get abandoned twice in that terrible forest.

“Lilia, can you come here for a second?”

With the carefully chosen gifts from the Magic Cart, I went around to my companions who were preparing to sleep.

“Here, take this.”

The gift for Lilia was the necklace.

It was completely different from the nanny’s necklace she had lost during the tutorial mission.

It was just a small, cute necklace with a dangling rose gemstone.

“I know this can’t replace that necklace. But I thought maybe it could at least comfort you a little—”

“Unni!”

The moment I handed it to her, Lilia’s big eyes filled with tears as she suddenly hugged me tightly.

I stopped mid-sentence and silently patted her back.

I could feel her trembling as she sobbed while holding me.

My heart stung.

Because what I was doing wasn’t pure kindness.

It was because this girl was the protagonist of this world.

Because she was the only lifeline for someone like me—originally just a villain—to survive.

That was why I acted so desperately.

Did I really deserve this pure girl’s affection and kindness?

“You’re a good girl, our Lilia.”

But whether it was fake or real, what did it matter?

The original story had already twisted.

And I had decided to live Wendy’s life.

That’s enough.

So I simply held Lilia until she calmed down.

After a while, she pulled away with a small smile.

“I’m okay now. Really!”

“You’re such a fool.”

I gently pressed down and patted her messy hair.

…And then, the sharp gaze I had been feeling.

“Eden.”

I naturally turned toward where the gaze came from.

He was crouching in the opposite corner, staring with obvious envy.

“…Huh?”

As if he never expected me to call him, Eden flinched.

He avoided my eyes, looking discouraged.

I walked over and crouched beside him.

“You were trying to protect me earlier, weren’t you?”

His eyes shifted before he mumbled quietly:

“Sorry. I spoke out of line.”

He lowered his head with a gloomy face.

He really looked like a puppy caught in the rain.

I really shouldn’t keep comparing people to dogs…

But his atmosphere matched it too well.

“And I’m not as fragile as you think.”

At my words, he shrank even more.

I chuckled softly and lightly flicked his forehead.

“And you’re just a kid, talking so boldly.”

“I-I’m sorry…”

Seeing his teary expression, I gently patted his head.

“Still… thank you.”

He misunderstood.

He rushed in without understanding the situation.

Those were things worth scolding.

But his desire to protect me was genuine.

So I couldn’t just hate or blame him.

“But calling your noona weak and soft was too much, you little brat.”

I messed up his hair while he stared at me with wide eyes.

“Oh, and this is your gift. You shoot well.”

I took out his present.

It was an archer’s hand guard that covered the back of the hand.

“Make sure you use it.”

It was partly to help with archery.

But honestly, I chose it to cover the slave mark on the back of his hand.

Whether consciously or not, he hated that mark.

And he seemed reluctant to show it.

“Oh, and one more thing.”

As I stood up, I suddenly remembered something and stopped.

I lightly pinched Eden’s cheek.

“Ugh.”

“Don’t speak casually to me. You’re just a kid.”

My inner noble absolutely could not tolerate casual speech from someone younger.

Leaving Eden standing there touching his cheek, I moved on to the next person.

The next one I went to see was Yeriell.